Mother

In all homes, the seat of power is occupied by mother, mommy, inang, nanang, or inay.
In Trancoville, it was mama Mely and as we remember today all mothers, I know we are one in thanking them from the bottom of our hearts for all the sacrifices, sufferings, pain, and joy of course, in rearing all of us children and giving the directions on the roads they should take to achieve their life goals.
In high school, one of my favorite reads was Khalil Gibran’s “The Prophet.”
I remember plagiarizing his writings when on her birthday, I gifted my mother a book of Gibran of course. I handwrote “mother is everything – she is our consolation in sorrow, our hope in misery, and our strength in weakness. She is the source of love, mercy, sympathy, and forgiveness. He who loses his mother loses a pure soul who blesses and guards him constantly.”
Not my words of course; mea culpa but it sure does come from my heart.
That explains why deep in our hearts, minds, and soul, the memory of a mother gone so soon is always there, for generations, day in, day out until you too exhale your last breath.
There comes a time though that one has to let go of our mother, not because we want to but because we have to. Mine was in dialysis and ill for almost 10 years of her life that forced her to retire from public school teaching.
She was in and out of the hospital until the last time where one felt that the end was near. Taking a poignant look at her “sleeping like a child” freed from physical hurt, stress and pain, all we did was to lift her up to the Lord and let His will be done. There really is no saying goodbye here.
The memories are vivid and this piece I dedicate to all those who are going through the loss of a mother. At her bedside at the Baguio General Hospital, I vividly recall just looking, speechless, and dumbfounded. Her health had taken a turn for the worst, and she has given the directive to the doctor that she neither wanted any further life-saving procedures to be performed nor be resuscitated or put on life support.
If fact, she wanted a Home against Medical Advice (HAMA) issued. The fact was, she was ready to go even if we were not.
The natural reaction was anger, fear, and sadness. As a family, we had fought a long, hard battle only to find her giving up so quickly and easily. We said there was hope and it was just a bump on the lonely road, and the endwas a miracle recovery. We were clearly not prepared, willing, or ready to say goodbye but we knew deep in our hearts that saying goodbye was the only medical-logical choice. The time had come and it was important to do so with respect, care, and dignity in following her wishes. Reality though is, one is never prepared to let go.
Butterflies are free and the spirit remains hovering over us, doing what she does best, guarding, protecting, and guiding her children in the after earth this time.
So, those whose mothers are still around, enjoy them, make the most of it, and this time do them a favor by giving them the tender loving care they deserve. Happy Mother’s Day to all super mothers out there.
Sigh!